I'm pretty new to cake and cookie decorating, so I know I need a lot of practice, and I've never taken any lessons. But can I just say how much I HATE fondant!

I recently made some fondant animals, and they came out pretty well, expecially for my first try. This week, I attempted a flower pot cake for my mother-in-law's birthday. I made daffodils, tulips and daisies (50/50 fondant gumpaste). They came out decently, I think - especially for my very first try at flowers.

The biggest problem that I seem to have is covering a cake with fondant. This was my 2nd (well, sort of 3rd) try. The first (2) try was for a ghost cake that I made in October - which was a complete disaster!! The whole thing cracked and ripped and it was a complete and total mess (some day maybe I'll get up the nerve to post it as a cake disaster, with the whole miserable story )!

This time, I had much better luck with rolling the fondant out and keeping it from cracking (I learned a lot here about thickness, etc.), but when I turned it right side up, my flower pot cracked at the bottom! I think the cake was lopsided and it put pressure on one side (of course it was the front side!) I'm attaching a picture here - if you have ANY suggestions, I'd love to hear them!

thanks in advance!!

Looks to me like the fondant got a bit dried out; are you using powders (cornstarch or sugar) or shortening to roll it out? I know some people use big plastic sheets to roll fondant...too much trouble for me to store that! Are you looking to fix this quick? You could cover the bottom edge with a band of the same colored fondant just for a quick fix if you need it, like a saucer. Just my 2 cents!

I use a large piece of vinyl to roll out the fondant and then just flip it over the cake. I've learned that it is better to use shortening on the fondant to prevent sticking, drying and cracking. You could simply fold the vinyl to store. What type of fondant are you using. I started using fondx a couple of months ago and it is great with the shortening.

Thanks for your help and your suggestions!

Ginger08 - I don't need a "quick fix" - it was served last night, and it was OK... I'm just trying to learn what to do for next time!

Bush1 - I used Wilton fondant - I knew no one was going to eat it (no one in my family likes icing at all, actually), and it buying ready made fondant was be less work than making my own.

I used a vinyl mat, and I used shortening, It was fine getting it off the mat, onto the "mold". Didn't crack at all when drying for 2 days. The problem occured when I turned it right side up and started filling in the drit adn puttign in the flowers, when the weight of the cake was on the small end (the bottom). does that make sense?

any other ideas? thanks again!

I've never coverd a cake with fondant that had to be moved in any way, but it seems to me the problem might be avoided by VERY carefully trimming the bottom so that there is a wee bit of clearance between the bottom of the fondant and the board. The fondant is always going to dry a little after it's been applied...and placing pressure on it by having some of the weight of the cake transfer to the fondant means something's got to give.

I also would flip the cake before the fondant dries. Like after applying it, then immediately put it right side up and resmooth as necessary while you still have a little play in the fondant.

good ideas - thanks!

The cake is cute. I definitely would suggest that you flip it and let it dry that way. If it dries with the weight of the cake on it, then you don't have to worry about it adjusting at all.